The present invention relates to a refrigerated merchandiser that includes a mullion assembly, and more particularly, the present invention relates to a refrigerated merchandiser that includes a mullion assembly to increase visibility of a product display area.
In conventional practice, commercial businesses such as supermarkets and convenience stores are equipped with refrigerated merchandisers. Some of these merchandisers are provided with doors that are attached to vertically oriented mullion assemblies, and are used for presenting perishable food or beverages to customers within a product display area while maintaining the fresh food or beverages in a refrigerated environment. The mullion assemblies support the doors and provide an area upon which door gaskets can be sealed to seal the refrigerated product display area from the surrounding ambient environment. Often, the mullion assemblies include a light source that illuminates the product display area for better marketing of the food product and for higher visibility to the customers.
FIGS. 1-4 show one example of an existing refrigerated merchandiser 10 that includes mullion assemblies 15. The mullion assemblies 15 are relatively large and obstruct the view of food product that is positioned in a product display area 20. Generally, the viewability of food product in the product display area 20 by a consumer or store personnel from outside the merchandiser 10 along an angled viewing perspective or line 25 is substantially obstructed by the mullion assemblies 15. The amount of obstruction that is caused by the existing mullion assemblies 15 increases relative to the distance at which the consumer views the food product. In other words, the farther away a consumer is positioned relative to the food product that is desired to be viewed, the more the mullion assemblies 15 obstruct the view of the desired food product. As such, consumers must be relatively close to a desired food product to view the food product.
Some conventional refrigerated merchandisers are open to the surrounding atmosphere. Often moist air penetrates the product display area, which can generate frost within the refrigerated product display area and increase energy that is required to maintain the refrigerated environment within the product display area.